Undercover narcotics officers work at the scene of a meth lab bust Wednesday. The raid was made at the Howard Johnson Hotel on Interstate 10 after police received a Crime Stoppers tip. Three people were taken into custody.
Guiseppe Barranco/The Enterprise less

Undercover narcotics officers work at the scene of a meth lab bust Wednesday. The raid was made at the Howard Johnson Hotel on Interstate 10 after police received a Crime Stoppers tip. Three people were taken ... more

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Beaumont Police arrest a man in connection with a meth lab bust on Wednesday at the Howard Johnson on Interstate 10. Two other people were taken into custody by Police who received a Crime Stoppers tip hours before the arrests were made.
Guiseppe Barranco/The Enterprise less

Beaumont Police arrest a man in connection with a meth lab bust on Wednesday at the Howard Johnson on Interstate 10. Two other people were taken into custody by Police who received a Crime Stoppers tip hours ... more

Image 6 of 6

Undercover narcotics officers work at the scene of a meth lab bust Wednesday. The raid was made at the Howard Johnson Hotel on Interstate 10 after police received a Crime Stoppers tip. Three people were taken into custody.
Guiseppe Barranco/The Enterprise less

Undercover narcotics officers work at the scene of a meth lab bust Wednesday. The raid was made at the Howard Johnson Hotel on Interstate 10 after police received a Crime Stoppers tip. Three people were taken ... more

Meth supply soars locally

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Methamphetamine, once cooked in rural trailers and now mass-produced in Mexican superlabs, has outpaced crack cocaine as the illegal drug posing the greatest threat to Southeast Texas.

For the first time, meth, known for the toll it takes on the body and teeth of users, is cheaper, more available and more associated with violent crime and property crime than crack in a 17-county area that includes Jefferson, Hardin and Orange counties, according to the 2014 Houston High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area Threat Assessment.

In 2009, the Jefferson County Regional Crime Laboratory detected methamphetamine in 97 samples taken from drug busts in Jefferson County. In 2013, the number jumpedto 246. The lab also analyzes samples from Orange, Hardin and Chambers counties, though it gets few from Hardin and Chambers.

From 2009 to 2013, the number of samples that contained meth more than doubled, from 162 to 382, across the four counties.

"It's a very popular drug right now, and it's a bad drug," said Judge Larry Gist, who presides over Jefferson County's Drug Impact Court.

The price of the drug, commonly known as crystal meth or ice, has dropped because of market saturation.

"The market is consumer-driven," Gist said. "The supply has caught up with the demand."

The majority of drug-related cases Jefferson County detectives have worked in recent years involve methamphetamine and prescription drugs, said Deputy Rod Carroll.

The drug gained public attention after the premiere of AMC's hit drama "Breaking Bad," in which a New Mexico high school chemistry teacher and lung cancer patient evolved into a feared drug lord cooking his signature blue meth.

In Jefferson and Orange counties, law enforcement agencies have increased efforts in the face of the imminent problem.

"(The number is) concerning in the sense that we don't like to see it that high," said Clint Hodgkinson, Orange County chief deputy. "But we're stepping up and making more arrests."

Hodgkinson said Orange County deputies have made at least 100 methamphetamine-related arrests this year, mostly for possession. Distribution arrests involve more complex investigations.

"You have to have an undercover officer to do an undercover purchase of it," Hodgkinson said.

Punishment for possession of meth can range from 180 days to life behind bars, depending on the amount.